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Arctic narwhals reveal climate-model errors

NARWHALS packing temperature and depth gauges connected to satellite transmitters have revealed that climatology models used for the Baffin bay region – which links the Atlantic and Arctic oceans – underestimate winter ocean temperatures there by as much as 1 °C. The measurements show that earlier warming between Greenland and north-east Canada’s Baffin Island has continued over the past decade.

The Arctic mammals, known as “sea unicorns” because of their single long tusks, have provided the best winter temperature measurements yet for this biologically important part of the Arctic Ocean. These add to a body of evidence showing that ocean temperatures around the world are rising. …